Published: Saturday, September 28, 2013 at 5:19 p.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, September 28, 2013 at 5:19 p.m.

Larry Morton's hobby is building model trains and the natural scenery that surrounds them. That passion is what led him to the Apple Valley Model Railroad Club, where he would become the club's president.

He was intrigued three months ago when the folks at DuPont State Recreational Forest came to him and asked if it would be possible to build a scaled model of the popular outdoor mecca.

"I was thrilled about it," Morton said. "I just had to sell it to the club."

That didn't take much effort, as the club and Morton jumped on the task and finished the model, which will be set up inside the Aleen Steinberg Center at the park on Oct. 16.

Steinberg was at the Historic Train Depot in Hendersonville on Saturday to see the model.

"You see (the forest) through an entirely different dimension," Steinberg said. "Here you see the lay of the land."

It's an accurate model, Morton said. Park officials gave the designer a topography map and Morton designed the model of a section of the forest that includes Hooker, Triple and High Falls.

"The topography is accurate," he said, and added that the "elevations are all correct."

The model forest is made of Styrofoam that he filed with different saws. The waterfalls were new territory for Morton, but he said new scenery materials have made it easier to do models like the one he was beaming about on Saturday.

"This is a model railroad without the trains on it," he said. "It's all the same technique."

This one, however, was special to him because of his connection to DuPont, he said.

"Since I hike down at DuPont a lot, I took my camera with me," he said. That aspect of it gives a lot of "personal satisfaction."

In the end, Morton and the club members were happy with the finished product. No one may be happier than Steinberg, though.

<p>Larry Morton's hobby is building model trains and the natural scenery that surrounds them. That passion is what led him to the Apple Valley Model Railroad Club, where he would become the club's president. </p><p>He was intrigued three months ago when the folks at DuPont State Recreational Forest came to him and asked if it would be possible to build a scaled model of the popular outdoor mecca.</p><p>"I was thrilled about it," Morton said. "I just had to sell it to the club."</p><p>That didn't take much effort, as the club and Morton jumped on the task and finished the model, which will be set up inside the Aleen Steinberg Center at the park on Oct. 16. </p><p>Steinberg was at the Historic Train Depot in Hendersonville on Saturday to see the model. </p><p>"You see (the forest) through an entirely different dimension," Steinberg said. "Here you see the lay of the land."</p><p>It's an accurate model, Morton said. Park officials gave the designer a topography map and Morton designed the model of a section of the forest that includes Hooker, Triple and High Falls.</p><p>"The topography is accurate," he said, and added that the "elevations are all correct."</p><p>The model forest is made of Styrofoam that he filed with different saws. The waterfalls were new territory for Morton, but he said new scenery materials have made it easier to do models like the one he was beaming about on Saturday.</p><p>"This is a model railroad without the trains on it," he said. "It's all the same technique."</p><p>This one, however, was special to him because of his connection to DuPont, he said. </p><p>"Since I hike down at DuPont a lot, I took my camera with me," he said. That aspect of it gives a lot of "personal satisfaction."</p><p>In the end, Morton and the club members were happy with the finished product. No one may be happier than Steinberg, though.</p><p>"When you see it like this," she said. "It's the promised land."</p><p>Reach Millwood at 828-694-7881 or at joey.millwood@blueridgenow.com.</p>